


Semper Occultus

by Himilce



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Excalibur, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Force Bond (Star Wars), I Don't Even Know, My First Fanfic, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Slow Burn, The Skywalker smile is a weapon of mass destruction, They Live in episodes 7-9 but saw 1-6 in theaters, alternative universe
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-30
Updated: 2020-06-23
Packaged: 2021-02-28 21:13:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 17,835
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23393839
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Himilce/pseuds/Himilce
Summary: Rey is coming back from a long day of scavenging. She bump into two men who’ll drag her to a treasure hunt across the galaxy for the most famous sword... ehem lightsaber. In between she’ll have to face the horrors of her past and the terrors of the present
Relationships: Kylo Ren/Rey, Rey/Ben Solo
Comments: 10
Kudos: 12





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first fic and I would like to thank, with all my heart, my betas. Without them, this would be a smashed potatoes and it wouldn't have been published

Rey looked at the ship while she was drinking from her bottle. It would fly up to the stars. If someone had told her younger self that she would see spaceships and aliens, she wouldn't have believed it.

Everything changed when she was ten years old. No matter how many years passed, she would always remember that her planet’s life changed on a Thursday. Until that particular day, Earth was a peaceful place. Its situation wasn't strategic and its technology wasn't enough to meet other species; until an idiotic battle between a dying empire and a bunch of tired Jedi ended up in their airspace. The final battle of the sixteenth Galactic Civil War took place on Earth, with spaceships burning and falling and firing at each other.

At first, no one truly believed what they were seeing, but the painful truth set in as entire cities were destroyed. A space battle isn't harmless, as movies want to show. When the dust settled and they buried their dead, the Republic came up with an explanation for all this destruction. The governments wanted all sort of money and resources, as reparation, but Rey couldn’t care less.

The Republic was impressed when they discovered that earthlings knew more about the history of the galaxy than they thought. The answer was simple: a son of an immigrant from Coruscant made a series of six very successful movies which happened _a long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away..._

Rey remembered that fateful day, but she didn’t have time to think about it now. She had a lot of work to do. If she wanted to eat something that evening, she needed to trade what she'd scavenged to Unkar Plutt. He was an awful person, but working for him was an honest way to survive in her tough neighbourhood. There were other ways to make money, much more profitable and quicker than scavenging, but these weren’t for her. If she had to eat, she’d eat without remorse.

As she counted her money on the way home, Rey saw a little figure running her direction. It was Jack, a twelve-year-old boy who was nearly always in trouble. He wasn’t a bad kid, but he was always looking for an easy way to make money. Rey was constantly getting him out of messes. If the Force hadn’t told her that he was anxious, his face made it painfully obvious.

Ah yes, right, I forgot to mention: Rey was Force-sensitive, one of the few left on the planet. No more comments for now on that matter.

“What are you doing here, at this time of the night, and obviously in trouble once again?” she asked.

Jack didn’t have the time to answer as two men ran up to him. They were both human: one with pale skin, blue eyes and blond hair, and the other with skin, hair and eyes: all black. In their own way, they were handsome. But that thought flew away when she realized what had happened by their worried and angry eyes. Rey fixed Jack with a dark look.

“Oh Jack, surely you didn't!!!”

“They were asking for it! They were in the middle of the street gawping at everything like a bunch of tourists!”

“I don't care!” Jack tried again to argue but she didn't let him. “Stealing only makes you a coward! We may be poor, but we still have our way of life, and being a vulgar criminal doesn't fit into it. You’re an Englishman, and therefore a gentleman, and a gentleman...”

“A gentleman doesn't steal.” The reluctant words came from the young boy as if they were a lesson that he doesn't want to learn, but knew they were true.

Rey pointed at the men with an imperious gesture.

“Now, give back what you stole, ask for forgiveness, and face the consequences of your actions.”

Jack went back to the men while dragging his feet. He raised a bag full of... well, Rey didn’t know what, and said a small sorry. The black man took it very quickly and gave the boy a rude look. Rey couldn't blame him; but the blond guy, who seemed to be older and the leader, did. After glaring reproachfully at his companion, he turned to Jack.

“Thank you for returning our belongings, young man.” A warm smile appeared on his face.

That was too much for Jack. He blushed like a tomato and ran to Rey like she was a lifeline. She lovingly ruffled his hair, gave some of her money, and sent him back to his house safely.

“Thanks for your help,” said the blond one.

“I wasn't helping you, I was helping him. Once you start to steal, your honour isn’t worth anything. And here, honour is everything.”

“Thank you, nevertheless.” He smiled again. Yeah, Rey understood why Jack had to fly away - that smile was too warm for this part of the world.

“What are your names?”

“He’s John, I’m Ben.”

They were liars, and bad liars at that.

“Yeah, and I’m Princess Leia. Come, Your Highnesses, the streets are not safe for you.”

🌘🌘🌘

Rey took them to her house. It wasn't a big much, but she loved it. The kitchen, bedroom and dining room were all in the same space. The bathroom wasn’t very big, but she had a bathtub and loved it with all her heart. Her apartment was on the sixth floor and didn’t have an elevator, but she preferred that way.

“I don't have beautiful views, but I can hear anyone coming up the stairs” - she looked at John entering into the apartment, breathing hard - “like a mammoth on a hot day.”

Ben smiled uneasily.

“You can also feel if they have good or bad intentions.”

Rey looked at his blue eyes, afraid for a moment. Kriff! Force-sensitives! She was so focused on Jack before that she hadn't thought to look at the new arrivals. There were so few Force-sensitives on Earth anymore that she had lost the habit of shielding her Force signature. Now she was exposed and very afraid.

“Don’t worry, we’re not here for you. And even if we were, we wouldn't do anything against your will.”

“Master! We don't know if we can trust her.”

“I’m not your master. We’re here as equals. She helped return our money, and I feel like we can trust her.”

“You’d trust a Hutt.”

Ben smiled as if at a private joke. “You’d be surprised.”

Rey relaxed a little; she also felt like she could trust the two men. So, like a good host, she started to prepare tea.

“So... what are two Jedi like you doing on a lost planet like this?”

“We are on a quest to retrieve a particular object that we think is here on Earth. I’m merely a Knight and John isn't yet a padawan. This is his first mission. The Council wants to see how he manages a peaceful undercover mission.”

Rey had a few words to describe the Jedi Council, and none was pleasant. She looked at John. He was old for a padawan, about her age. She found that very strange but she said nothing; it was none of her business.

“And that mission has brought you to London?”

“As a first step. We want to reach the station of St Pancras, but I think we got on the wrong bus and didn’t realize it until we got to the end of the line. We were thinking about the next step when we met our young friend.”

Rey tried to not laugh. It was delightfully innocent. They were lucky to have only been robbed by Jack and nothing more. She sighed.

“Alright, you can stay here tonight. Tomorrow, I’ll take you to St Pancras. But you’ll pay for my round trip ticket!”

Ben smiled at her. Kriff, that thing was a weapon of mass destruction!

“Thank you very much. I don't know what we would have done without you.”

“Ended up eaten by a rancor, if I had something to say.” That last part was whispered. “We’ll take turns for the shower. I’ll go first and I’ll lock the door. If one of you picks the lock, I swear by all things, I know where to bury a body and make sure it’s never found.”

She served the tea before going to the shower. It had been a stressful day and a challenging evening. She needed a hot shower like life itself.

She heard them talking to each other as she was undressing. Her apartment walls were very thin.

“I thought there were no Force-sensitives on Earth.” It was John who spoke.

“Officially, there aren't.” Rey could hear the sorrow in Ben’s voice. “It was a gift, for this and the next two generations.” A silence followed that sentence. “She must have witnessed the horror... The crime of the Council... She's old enough.” More silence. Yes, he's right. If he's talking about what she's thinking, Rey was there.

“It happened three years after the end of the Civil War. The Jedi Council was delighted. A new world, full of people who could all be Force-sensitive and enrolled as Jedi. They started to test all the minors, since they were more easily dragged into that kind of life. But in the end, a great part of the population was analysed, with or without their consent. All this data ended in a database that was very easy to break into. And then, the First Order issued a massive attack on all the Force-sensitives on Earth, using information stolen from the database. The earthlings were untrained and unarmed. Earth made a distress call to the Jedi Council. You know what they did?”

“Of course, everyone does: they sent help. The three fastest ships first, and then their entire fleet.”

“I wish that were true. They debated. For hours. The three ships left only when they saw the futility and loss of time and lives that would result from continuing the discussions. They disobeyed a direct order to stay in the Praxeum. Even now, all the Jedi who fought in those ships continue to face the consequences of that act. The fleet was only sent to avoid the humiliation of defeat.”

“But they saved the few Force-sensitives left!” John protested. “The news said that without those three ships, there would have been an even greater disaster on Earth. The First Order was forced to retreat in their first attack!”

“And yet it was a victory for the First Order.” Sorrow laced through Ben’s voice. “They killed so many potential Jedi, and planted a seed of mistrust inside the Jedi Order that would give them one of their finest commanders: Kylo Ren.”

“ _You_ also fought in one of those three ships, and you’re _not_ one of the commanders of the First Order! Kylo Ren can cry like a baby in front of me, I wouldn't be soft on him.”

Ben was about to say something about that when Rey came out of the bathroom with a wide-eyed look of incredulity on her face.

”You were part of the first three ships?”

Ben nodded his head affirmatively.

Rey swallowed, then demanded “What is your name? Your real name!”

His expression showed that he understood the gravity of this moment.

”Feryaid. Feryaid Skywalker.”

Rey stood straight and he did the same.

“I, Rey Sandslider, fifth of the twenty-four force-sensitives who survived the First Order attack, thank you, Feryaid Skywalker, in the name of all of us.” She bowed her head. “Thank you so much!” She didn't cry, but it was a near thing.

Feryaid looked at her with his blue eyes. They weren't the bright blue of sapphires, but more like a clear mountain river, with shades of grey. They were impossible to doubt or distrust. In that river of sincerity, Rey made a decision that would change her life forever. She didn’t know exactly why, but she was certain of what she had to do.

“I don't know what brought you to Earth, but I’m going to help you. I’m not taking ‘no’ for an answer. So, tell me, what's your mission?”

🌘🌘🌘

Rey didn't usually swear, she found it both rude and lazy. But this was a special occasion.

“Are you _fucking_ kidding me?”

“Language.” Feryaid was serious.

“He’s kidding, right?” She looked at John, hoping for a confirmation of the insanity of the blond guy. “Let me sum up: the Jedi Council, who deserves all of their lightsabers shoved in extremely unpleasant places, has sent you, a hero to the Force-sensitives on Earth, on an impossible quest to find the lightsaber of your ancestors, which was last seen here on Earth over 1500 years ago?”

Feryaid nodded his head affirmatively.

“And as if that wasn’t enough, the most famous lightsaber in the universe, the lightsaber of the Skywalker family, has another name on Earth.”

“Yes.” John consulted his notes. “The name was Ascanitur. I think.”

Rey grabbed John by his shirt. She was very, _very_ nervous.

“ _Excalibur_! Its _fucking_ name is Excalibur!”

Another rebuke of “Language” was tossed out by the elder Jedi.

“Don’t care! You’re telling me that the most famous lightsaber of all time is actually the most famous sword in all of human history? And you have to find it _here and now_?!”

“Yes.”

“I need a drink.”

But instead of vodka, her first impulse, she went to the tea. She was British, after all, and she had stereotypes to fulfill. The sweet taste cascaded down her throat, comforting her, bringing memories of another life, long gone. A life where the sun and the sand were melded with the sound of laughter and water. A life that she had always hoped to find again one day. But she knew now that the sands of her childhood were unreachable. She looked at her mug, suddenly very tired.

“What we all need, I think, is that shower that we were talking about before, and a good night’s sleep.”

Feryaid was right. The turns in the shower were fast. Rey made a light meal out of the food she had on hand, as well as some of what the two men had brought. An hour later she was sleeping in her bed, John on the couch and Feryaid on the floor. He refused to take anything else because, as he said, “I’m thirty, not eighty, I can still sleep on the ground.”

Rey wasn't going to change his mind, but she still had a restless night. She was haunted by the same dreams that had plagued her for years. She was in a cockpit, maneuvering as if she was born to fly one of those things. She knew exactly what to do next, the right button to push, where to look to make the right gesture. The rapidity of the movements was hypnotic. It always ended in a ball of fire with Rey drenched in cold sweat. That night was no exception. She woke up breathing heavily.

“Bad dream?”

Rey looked to the voice. She found Feryaid leaning against the window. He had a pen in hand and a small notebook open in front of him. All very earthly.

“Yes...” She sat up in her bed. “What are you writing?”

“Letters.”

“To Ben?” She knew she was right even if he didn’t say anything. “Who is he? Your boyfriend?”

A laugh came from the Jedi, releasing some of the stress they'd been under.

“No! He’s my cousin.” He looked at the stars. “Here on Earth, you know the story of the Skywalkers from the films. Well, George Lucas took some liberties. At the time, he couldn't know the whole truth, because it wasn't public. The story of the films happened a very long time ago. But history always repeats itself. It happened again, two generations ago, with my grandfather. Before falling to the Dark Side, he had three children: my father, now deceased, and two twins, my uncle Luke and my aunt Leia.”

He smiled at her look of surprise. “Yes, those are very common names in the Skywalker family, most of all in twin siblings. Ben is the only son of my aunt Leia. He disappeared five years ago. And he wasn’t the only one: my uncle Luke disappeared too. We don't know where they are exactly. I’ve always been very close to my cousin; we were born the same day.”

He sighed. “Since his disappearance, I’ve been keeping a record of all that’s happened to me and the family in letters, so that when he comes back, he’ll know everything.”

“That’s great, but five years of letters is a lot of reading. I hope he likes reading.”

A shadow of sorrow passed through Feryaid’s eyes.

“Oh, he likes it a lot. He’s a bit of a scholar." He smiled at her again. It wasn't that smile which could stab her heart with no regrets, but it was beautifully sad. “Why don't you try to get some more sleep? We have a long day ahead.”

She smiled at him.

“You too. Say “ _hi_ ” to Ben for me, ok? Good night.”

“I will. Good night.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A lot of things happens and yes, Kylo Ren make his big entrance.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I would want to warn. English is not my mother tongue, they can be some mistakes. For that I apologize already. I’m publishing this chapter completely wild, without a beta, because I would try to publish every 1.5-2 weeks and I don't want to bother so often someone. I’m learning and reviewing to correct possible mistakes.  
> Nonetheless I hope you will enjoy ^^

The next morning Rey sighed deeply.

“You’re so lucky I come with you.” John looked interrogatively. “I don't know where you took the information, but it's completely wrong.”

“From the Galaxy Database.” John passed to her his notes. She almost died in chock.

“Calonton?? His kingdom’s name was Camelot!! And what?! Vivianne is one of the names of the Lady of the Lake, not Arthur's wife!! Who was called Guinevere, by the way." She continued to make a lot of corrections during at last ten minutes. “Krif! You were about to go in the wrong direction. Arthur’s supposed tomb is not in Canterbury Cathedral but in Glastonbury Abbey.”

“There is a difference?”

“Just a tinny one: you leave London and instead of turning east... you have to turn _west_!”

Feryaid tried to not laugh.

“Rey, what do you think is our best option? You’re the expert here.”

“The fastest way is by car. But I don’t have the driver's license and your papers are so fake that they would never pass inspection. So, our only option is the train. Slower but safer. Weapons are allowed with a tinny paper super easy to fake. I’ve done it a hundred times. And I’m sure you want to have with you your mighty lightsabers.” She cut out every possible argumentation with a smile.

They were ready to go an hour late. Rey took her staff, her bag, and a final look at her apartment. She felt a cold sensation looking at the empty space. Like if there wasn't going to be any life for a long, long time. She was on an important mission, if Feryaid had started it, that's meant that he had solid leads. She had to hope that she would return home soon.

Rey was closing the door when she saw a last item she had to take with her. She took it and closes her apartment with a tinny sigh.

“My father's sunglasses” She explained to the interrogative look of John. “With them, even the greyest London day has a blue sky. Look, try it!” John was amazed. The sunglasses were tinted in a gradient blue that made the centre of the view clear but the sky blue. “Hey, they look great on you!” She gave him a warm smile. That wasn't a compliment she gave very often.

They arrive at the bus station and Rey made kindly fun of them with the bus drivers who were waiting for their turn to begin. Some of them knew her all since she was a little girl. She was a neighborhood girl who takes care of the neighborhood kids. She told them she was hired on a job for a couple of weeks. Security stuff and how to move on Earth for two lost tourists. She barely lied.

🌘🌘🌘

London was already a busy city before the Republic arrival, but now it was one of the central cities of the planet with a space airport. The activity was too much intense for Rey. She preferred the calm of the periphery. They were too many people and too much traffic. There, the people lied... Well, in her neighborhood too, but at least she knew what to expect. Here they lied and steal with a smile, and lesser conscience than a hyena. The faster away, the better.

St Pancrace continued to have his charming old façade. That hadn't changed, it was everything else. At its left, a huge building replaced the British Library after its destruction during the last battle of the Civil War. What was saved was transferred to another building in another part of the city, safer. To the right there were the remains of the late King’s Cross Station, also destroyed, but during the attack of the First Order. It was never rebuilt. Now it served only as a junkyard for old trains, cars and space ships.

They were in their way to the queue for buying the trains tickets when John froze. Rey asked him what was going on.

“You see that group over there?” At six or seven meters there was a compact group of ten people. “They are stormtroopers. They have taken off their armour, but I'd recognise their walk anywhere. We can be in trouble, big trouble.”

“What do you propose?” Rey wasn't a fan of the First Order’s foot soldiers; she doesn't wanted to be in a fight in the middle of a station in broad daylight.

“Strategic retreat. We don't know how many they are, and what or who they are searching.”

They tried to get out, but they came face to face with another group who was entering into the station. The scene was comic for a few seconds. The second group looked at they, they looked at the group, neither of them reacted and then, one of the stormtroopers of the first group yelled “IT’S THEM!! GET THEM!”

Feryaid was the first to react: he kicked the biggest one of the group in front of them and yelled his friends to run. John didn't make him repeat it twice. He took Rey’s hand and began to run. Rey hated when someone touched her without her permission. She knew how to run alone, thank you very much!

“We need to split!” They were in the street, in front of St Pancrace. “I’ll distract them. Meanwhile, you two hide. I’m the most trained of the three and I can be very agile avoiding stormtroopers. John, we can communicate, you know how. Now, GO!”

Rey and John ran to one direction and Feryaid to another. They entered at King's Cross station. They heard screams and blasters shouting. And then, John freezes again.

“Oh no...”

He was completely pale. But he didn't have to explain to Rey why, she recognised the sound too: T-Fighters. They ran again through the junkyard that once was one of the major stations of the city.

“We have to help him!”

“How? The majority of those space ship are useless! And those who aren't, I don't know if they can fly!”

“We have to try!”

John was right. Rey began to analyse what they had. She was a scavenger, she saw gold where others only see garbage. They had three possibilities. She ran to the closest, but the fuel tank was broken and she didn't saw her motor. If that was missing, what more could be missing? She turns then to the second and a hunch said that this was the one. It was an old YT-1300 Corelian freighter, 8.27 meter height, 34.37 meters length, Isu-Sim SSP05 hyperdrive generator. A classic!! And her door was just in front of her demanding barely her fingers to be opened. It took her three seconds and John ran into the ship. Rey was about to enter into the freighter when she realised where she was: the door had opened between the platforms nine and ten. A wide smile appeared in her face. But the reality struck again: the T-Fighters passed over, shooting the Force knows what. They had to help Feryaid now. She entered in the ship nonetheless humming a famous song.

The freighter was a old mess. She hadn't been clean in at least twenty years. But that was Rey’s last concern. She sent John down where she knew the weapons were. Don't ask her how she knew it, it was an instinct. John ran to the ventral canon and Rey to the cockpit. Force! It was more beautiful than in her dreams! But she had a big problem: that cockpit needed a co-pilot and she was alone. Start this machine would be hard. However, she was stubborn as an ox and she wouldn't be beaten by an old lady. It seems that the freighter felt her energy because in a matter of seconds she flew like she was impatient to demonstrate what she had inside.

Rey heard John almost fall. She put her headphones smiling.

“Everything alright, down there?”

“I don't know if I prefer to face the stormtroopers before you driving!”

“Sorry to say but put your seatbelt on because there are curves coming. And I don't care what the Jedi Council have said: if they shoot on us, shoot them back!”

They departed King's Cross faster as lightning. Three T-Fighters follow them. That bloody things were fast, but she was agile and know the skies of London. They were in the middle of the city, too many potential targets and buildings to be destroyed. She wasn't like the Republic or the First Order, willing to past over everybody to have what they want.

“John, I’m going to take the battle out of London. Too many people could be hurt. Warn Feryaid.”

She didn't let him reply, she let the T-Fighters get close to them and then flew away from the city. The freighter was faster than she had imagined. She liked to be put to the edge of velocity and direction. They fled the city in less than five minutes. John had not yet discovered how the cannon worked that there was no longer any danger to the city's inhabitants. Rey sighed with relief. A relief who lasted seconds until the first blasters hit them.

“What are you doing?!”

“It’s not that simple! This thing moves a lot!”

“You want to survive? I have to move! And try to do it without a co-pilot.” The last sentence was whispered.

John whispered something too but Rey was too busy driving the ship for paying attention. The freighter was bigger and slower than the T-Fighters but she was a better pilot. She lost one of them in a small wood next to the city and a second crash in an old warehouse because it was incapable of changing its direction in the last minute. But the last was tough. John defended them very well, but that T-Fighter had their ventral canon blocked and almost her reflexes. But she was best.

“Be prepared.” She said to John when a crazy plan showed up in her mind.

“For what?” He was so scared. She tried to not smile.

For her plan, Rey needed altitude. She flew to the clouds and shut up the engines. The ship fell as she predicted: ventral face to the sky. John reacts well and shoots the enemy who had followed them. It blew up like fireworks.

Rey landed safely. She and John met in the hallway in front of the stairs that led to the canon. They were amazed by the abilities showed by the other. Their mutual prising ended when a little sound came from the wrist of the man. Through there, they could hear the voice of Feryaid.

“Still alive? I’m impressed. Can you still fly with the ship? I need a lift. I had some help here that I want to present you. We can meet in a discrete location.”

🌘🌘🌘

The discrete location was a tiny town at 28 miles from London. Rey almost fainted: it was Crawley, the hometown of The Cure, her father's favourite band. She tried to not think about when they met Feryaid and his ”help” in a desert street, it was still too painful. They were two: a man, tall, next to his sixties, already grey hair, and a wounded Wookie. She had never see a Wookie in real life. They were impressive!

And yes! There it was again, that smile capable of illuminating an entire city. She had done well taking her father's sunglasses.

“Guys! Let me present you two members of my family” He was a Skywalker? “I present you my uncles Han Solo and Chewbacca. Uncle Han, uncle Chewie, these are Rey and, well I have to give your real name: Finn”

“I pretty much knew that John wasn't his name”

“You knew?” Finn was impressed.

“Believe me, big deal, women always know, always!”

He shook his hand with the young man and after with Rey. She barely remembered how to think. She was meeting a war hero, but most of all, a legendary smuggler! He was an icon in her neighborhood! The kind of man who everyone wants to be: a cunning guy who can get out of every situation only talking.

🌘🌘🌘

Finn and Rey took their three friends to the ship. Neither of the five knew who was most shocked when they discovered that the old lady was in fact none other that the _Millennium Falcon_. What she was doing in a junkyard in Earth was beyond the comprehension of any of them. The younglings gave to Han and Chewbacca a few moments alone. They were too many memories to be share. After that, Feryaid explained to his uncles what he was doing on Earth and where they we're going.

“In Glastonbury I have a friend" Han said. “She know the place, if she had a hint, she will help in this insanity of quest of yours.”

“Is not a quest, uncle, is a mission.”

“You’re after one of the most mythical swords in Earth and Galactic History. After that, if you’re after the Grail kiddo, I wouldn’t even be surprise.”

Rey tried to not chuckle. In Earth, the actor who incarnated the role of Han made another successful series of movies; in one of them his character finds the Holy Grail.

“What are you smiling at?”

“Nothing Finn. I was just imagining Feryaid with a whip.”

The poor man doesn’t knew what to say. Han took a seat in the cockpit and Rey sat in the co-pilot seat.

“What do you think you are doing?” He asked her.

“You need a co-pilot. Yours is wounded, Finn doesn't know how to ignite a lighter, Feryaid said to me that he’s not comfortable flying and I was the one who escapes three T-Figters without one.”

Han wasn't agree but didn't have a choice. They didn't make thirty miles that Rey had already proved herself absolutely essential. She knew what button to push in what moment, she stopped a poisonous gas to kill them all and she bypassed a compressor by pulling it out of the ship. She loved that freighter!

🌘🌘🌘

They arrived at Glastonbury very fast. Even if they don't have clearance for flying in English airspace, the distance was too short to being noticed. The Falcon was left outside the city watched by Chewbacca. Rey could almost hear her whine. She didn't like to be left behind.

Waiting for the guys to disembark, Han took Rey apart. He give her a little blaster. It was a NN-14 pistol.

“You know how to use one of those?”

“Yeah. You pull the trigger.” She tried looking at how it feels in the hand.

“A little bit more to it than that.” Han put her arm down, a bit worried. “You've got a lot to learn.”

“I think I can handle myself.”

“I know you do. That's why I'm giving it to you.”

She smiled to him.

“Chewie and the _Falcon_ seems to like you.”

“I like them too.”

Han seemed to want to tell something but he was interrupted by Feryaid and Finn who were coming. After that, they headed to the city. Han took them to a bar not far away from the ancient abbey. They hadn’t made two steps that they heard a powerful: “HAN SOLO” shouted all over the place. A woman, shorter than Rey, and with the head of the shape of a bug came to them. She introduced herself as Maz Kanata, the owner of the bar. Han talk to her a few minutes and then they took a small table a little further to explain, _again_ , all their mission.

“The sword is not here” Maz said with a sweet voice. “We don't even have the body. Is an empty grave. But don't despair. An old friend of mine gave me, long time ago, something that may can help you. I cannot open it, but maybe Feryaid can.”

She took them to the basement, trough a long corridor until a storage where she shows them a strange little... cube? No, it had more than four faces.

“A holocron!” Three puzzles faces turned to Feryaid. “A holocron is something where you can store information and can only be opened by a Force-user.” He explained. “They are Jedi and Sith holocrons. By its shape and its feeling I would say this is a Jedi. The Sith ones usually had a pyramidal form. But it's one way to know: opening it, because a light-sider cannot open a Sith holocron. Can I?”

Maz gave him the object. Feryaid closed his eyes to focus. At first, nothing happened, but then the holocron opened showing the torso of a young woman. She was extremely beautiful, in a way that Rey found strange.

“I am.....na........ lo. I am the keeper of the sword.” Incredible, this file was maybe 1500 years old, thought Rey, but unfortunately the file was corrupted in some parts. “A race has begun.... of the sword. I have seen the future. I know there will be.... racers and a judge. This judge will decide who keep the sword, if any. I’ll make.... riddles that would take you to the next riddle until.........................” During several minutes they could not hear what she had said. “...remain neutral and secret until the end. But he or she will be with you all along the journey. Here... rst riddle: I was built upon the light, and the light upon me. And this light was crushed by the twisted darkness. But they never prayed................ ” a few moments of silent images and the holocron died.

Everyone was impressed and didn't know what to said. But before Rey could articulated a word, her vision blurred. She first saw a man and a woman arguing. The woman was dressed elegantly in a blue dress. The man wore a white armour. For a strange reason, Rey could tell that their discussion wasn't bad. The couple disappeared for an image of her and Feryaid fighting, training, in a jungle. They both handled lightsabers, but she couldn't say what color they had. Then snow began to fall and instead of her friend, she was herself facing a tall man in a mask. He was wearing black clothes and had a red cross-guard lightsaber. He chased her in the snow, into the woods. She escaped into an audience room, where a woman was looking at her smiling. She couldn't see her well, the room was in the dark. Rey opened a door and entered into a bedroom, in what it seems a space ship. A man was a seated next to a window. His long figure was cut into the stars. His arm was resting lazily on his knee. He turn his head to her and she saw the most beautiful smile in the all galaxy. And she hear a voice. Oh, she recognized that voice, she knew it so well ”Rey, _ner ka’rta_ ”.

She came back to the corridor. She couldn't breathe, she tried but couldn't.

“I need air.”

She didn't wait the others to be worried. She run, run away from that corridor, that woman, those visions. She only stopped when she found a herself in a parking. The sun was high, the breeze clear, she heard some people close talking to each other. Here and there were cars parked. One took her attention. It was a black open-top car. A woman was inside: her legs were over the front window, crossed at the level of the ankle. She was wearing all black leather and her blond hair was attached in a high ponytail. She was talking to a man seated on the hood of the car. He was wearing a black and grey uniform. Rey didn't pay much attention because, although she hadn't seen him for ten years, his Force-signature hadn't changed at all. She’d always recognize him everywhere.

“Dopheld?”

He looked at her swiftly. A myriad of expressions crossed his face: boredom, weirdness, recognizing, astonishment, disbelief, joy, and all its shades in between. He only said one word, “Rey!” and ran to take her hands. He knew perfectly that she doesn't like hugs. His hands were, as always, a little warmer than hers. She was incapable of stopping smile. The last time she have seen him was almost a decade ago, before the Battle of Earth, before the arrival of the Republic, before all this mess.

“What are you doing here? Are you ok? It's been a long time!”

“Almost a decade” His sweet voice as a boy hadn't changed so much growing up. It was only more profound. “I’m fine, I’m fine. I’m here for work.”

The double statement worried Rey. Dopheld didn't want to preoccupied her for some reason. She preferred let that pass. She could attack in another moment.

“I’m here for work too. Accompanying tourists”

“And for that you need your staff? Earth has become that dangerous?” He was always very perceptive.

“You know that I can protect myself.”

Rey heard a contemptuous scoff from behind Dopheld. The woman in leather was standing there. In her waist she had a knife collection that it’ll would be the envy of more than one trader in Rey’s neighborhood.

“Don’t laugh. You know better than anyone than look can be traitorous, Zhad. And frankly, if you ask me, I would love to see a fair battle between you two.”

“And you know better than anyone than battles are never fair.” Her voice was tough as a rock.

“That’s why I’ve talked about the _fair_ part. In real circumstances the combat would last a couple of minutes at most.”

“I would never use my lightsaber in a delicate flower.”

“And who is telling that Dopheld thinks I’m the delicate flower?”

“I’m Zhad Ren, the second most powerful Knight of Ren. Who you think you are?

“I’m Nobody. Just for that, I’m already stronger than you.”

Dopheld had to stop the knight before she attacked Rey, making his mark-trade face of « _making friends_ » from their youth. She smiled at that. Ten years may had past, but she was still able to got them in trouble.

Then she see it. A powerful dark light coming from behind the parking, behind the trees, from the ruins of the old abbey.

“You feel it too, isn't it?” Rey could sense the cold in the words of the knight. “That raw power is my master, Kylo Ren. Fear him.”

But Rey couldn't feel any fear. She should, but she didn't. She looked at Dopheld.

“I thought that you didn't have any master.”

“I don't.”

“Oh yes, you have.” The words of Zhad were sharp as her knives. “You’re in the First Order, remember?”

“She knows what I mean.” Dopheld was in the First Order. Rey kept that information for later. “You’ve always been someone who judge by herself, Rey. Don't let the others decide for you your opinion about that man. Meet him.”

“Are you crazy?! He has told us that he don't wanted to be bothered.”

“He’ll love her, believe me.”

But Rey didn't heard them anymore. Something was pushing her to the ruins. There was anyone, just rocks barely in their place. She could tell that the abbey was once very high, but nothing more. She only could hear the wind in the leaves and her footsteps in the grass. She scarcely breathed. She advanced to the middle of once what was the chapel. Between a broken arch, high of almost twenty meters, one who seemed a gate to another universe, was standing a man. He was wearing black robes, cape and hood. His face was hidden by a mask. Rey knew he was tall, but the broken arch gave him the impressiveness of the centuries. He was looking at her. She knew it like she knew that the sun rises to the east and fall to the west. She was feeling his powerful will. She’ve sensed before, in that vision. Kylo Ren would be the man who will chase her in the snow.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That’s it! Hope you have enjoy it. Kylo Ren will talk in the next chapter xD
> 
> Here some links for more explanation in some aspects:  
> [The pistol of Rey](https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Rey%27s_NN-14_blaster_pistol)  
> [The Holocron](https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Holocron/Legends)  
> [The Jedi Council](https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Jedi_Council/Legends)
> 
> I imagine Rey as someone who follows a lot of big fandoms. It will be a lot of fun that way. We know already that she had saw the Original Trilogy of Star Wars. In this second chapter we have encountered two Harry Potter references: [The platform 9¾ ](https://harrypotter.fandom.com/wiki/Platform_Nine_and_Three-Quarters) and [the music](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UuPb1J_RCJM&list=OLAK5uy_kwUD6nc0mztaUU4bI53qdICY9-GmaOrBU).  
> The movie where Harrison Ford chased the Holly Grial is [Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indiana_Jones_and_the_Last_Crusade). Very recommended if you haven't seen it. 
> 
> This is [Glastonbury Abbey](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glastonbury_Abbey) and [ this](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/aa/Glastonburyabbey.jpg) where I imagine Kylo standing in the final scene.
> 
> I’ve read in some fics that in [basic](https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Galactic_Basic) the common language in the galaxy, the space ships use the gender she. In English they have the neutral. I like very much the idea of the Falcon to be a temperamental old lady. That's why I have conserved the idea of using the gender she for the space ships. 
> 
> Ner kar’ta is the [Mando’a](https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Mando'a/Legends) word for “my heart / my soul”. You can speculate, have fun!
> 
> I’m on [Twitter](https://mobile.twitter.com/Himilce02648519). It's normally a bunch of nonsense but sometimes I post something about the next chapter, a sneak peak or the data release ^^


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> At last, we see Kylo and the Jedi Academy. But there, not everyone is a friend...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Jedi Academy, or Praxeum, is a place in a galaxy far far away. I like the idea of the Praxeum being a place full of different species. Every time a new species will be mention, I will attach a photo for you to have a first idea. For example, a [Wookie](https://i.pinimg.com/originals/67/19/38/671938a2bc77c437c83a491a2d04b22f.jpg). At the end, a link to the wookieepedia will be accessible. I will dig more to have footnotes relate for a more easy reading in the future.
> 
> I want to thank you with all my heart my beta!! You are an angel!!

[ ](https://ibb.co/M14DGv1)  


Rey didn't remember her mother very well. She died when she was seven years old. But she remembered some things, like her calm smile, or her ability to befriend everyone, one ability that Rey had inherited. She recalled some things about her death. It was a good death, from her mother's point of view: she died in combat, defending her people and her family. Rey lived in a small village in the Sahara. Too small to be bothered by anyone - at least that was what they believed. One day, armed men attacked them. It was her mother who went out to defend them. Her father hid her. Thirteen years later, she still remembered her last words to them: ” _my beloved_ ” to his father and ” _my little Rey_ ” to her. She could still see her in their home, looking at them as they ran for their life. She would never see her again alive.

One of the things that she had taught Rey was in every first meeting to be polite. So when she first met the man in the ruins of the old abbey, she did what she was told to do:

“Good afternoon.” 

Rey was more than sure that he was not used to being treated with such good manners. But as her mother used to say: “manners make us people”. She would not be the first to be rude.

”Good afternoon to you too.”

Well, at least she had a reply, and with the same manners as hers. His voice was raspy and grave because of the voice modulator in the mask. Rey wasn't sure if she wanted to know what was under it. She could hear something dangerous beneath those words. 

“I thought I had requested to be undisturbed.”

“I’m quick.” She smiled. “And you should know: there is nothing in this tomb. It’s empty.”

“I know it's a cenotaph.” A _what_? Rey didn't know what that was, but she said nothing. “I was hoping that I would find a clue over something that I’ve acquired recently. But it’s broken, it showed me nothing.”

Rey didn't know what pushed her to speak at the moment. She should have shut up, as every instinct in her body was telling her to do. If that man was Kylo Ren, Finn wasn't a fan of what he had done. But Dopheld was right; Rey wasn't a person who judged someone or something only by what she had heard. She preferred to listen and arrive at a conclusion by herself.

“If it is a holocron, it has a message. But I’m not sure if I have the right to give you any information about this message. The holocron wasn't mine in the first place.”

That was a mistake. She thought he would only ask her to hand over the message. But she sensed the darkness gathering around him. She had something that he wanted and she had to give it to him. He only moved his head a little in her direction. But she knew instantaneously she had to run. That man couldn’t capture her! He could take information that didn't belong to her from her head so easily. 

Rey began to panic. It wasn’t a rational feeling. She knew it, but she couldn't do anything to prevent it.

_Don't show fear! Never let your enemy know you are scared_.

A memory from the past saved her. She calmed herself, breathed, stood and looked at him in defiance. 

“Try again to open the holocron. It’ll show you the message this time”.

He looked at her and the darkness began to disperse. Rey didn't know why, but Kylo Ren followed her advice. He took a similar object of the one she had seen in Maz Kanata’s bar from his cloak and he held it. It took him less time than Feryaid, but it opened too. The same woman appeared:

I am ......Djo..... I am the keeper of the sword.” It seemed to be the same message. It was also incomplete in some parts “A race has begun for the possession of the sword. I have seen..... I know there will be.... racers and... judge. This judge will decide who keeps the sword, if any. I’ll make a certain number of riddles that would take you to the next.........................” Rey wasn't lucky with that big part. It was missing too. “Here is an important part: the judge will remain neutral and secret until....... But.... will be with you all...... Here is the first riddle: "........................... And.... was crushed by the twisted darkness. But they never prayed to me even if my name suggests that function. Good luck racer. My next message will be delivered in the place.” And the holocron died.

Waves of fury and frustration unfurled from the man in front of Rey. She knew that he was very dangerous and she was directly in the path of his frustration. He could hurt her, or worse, kill her. But she knew what she had to do to stop him.

“ _I was built upon the light, and the light upon me. And this light was crushed by the twisted darkness. But they never prayed to me even if my name suggests that function_.” Kylo Ren looked at her, a new sensation of bewilderment passing through his Force-Signature. “This is the first riddle complete.”

His emotions calmed. She had given him what he wanted without his asking. It was incredible how much he could express even with his mask on. The position of his arms, the relaxed grip of his fists, the tension in his shoulders. Rey was incredibly curious to see how much his face could show. She wanted to ask him to remove the helm. She didn't know where that urge came from, but it was there. 

She was about to express her feelings when the woman and Dopheld came back.

“Lord Ren.” It was the woman who spoke. “We have received a message. They are calling us back. It's over.” A new wave of frustration came from Kylo Ren. “The Resistance is coming. Orders?”

“We are done here. No need to waste troops and time in a fruitless battle.”

And without a single word to her, he left the old abbey. Rey said nothing. There was nothing to be said. She only followed the strange group with her eyes. Before leaving, Dopheld turned around and looked at her. She smiled softly at him. She knew they would meet again. That smile was a promise. He knew it too. Without saying a word, he followed his two superiors. Rey exited the ruins of the abbey on the other side. She found Feryaid and the others looking for her.

🌒🌒🌒

“Why is she still alive?”

Zhad Ren was almost equally as impressed as Dopheld. He had an idea, but he was so unsure...

“She’s incredibly powerful. You haven’t felt it?”

“Of course! And that's why I’m worried. You're going to let her fall into the hands of the Jedi? Becoming one of them?”

Dopheld had to intervene here.

”She’ll never be a Jedi.” He couldn't see the face of any of the Knights, they were both wearing their mask again, but he didn't need to: he could feel their incredulity. “It’s not in her nature. But don't get any ideas: she doesn’t bow or kneel in front of anyone.”

“You seem to admire her.”

The voice of Kylo Ren was dangerous.

“You have met her and she is still alive. Make your own deductions, Lord Ren.”

Normally he would have _never_ said such a dangerous thing, but it must have been Rey’s influence; she was always getting him in trouble. He was sure he was about to die in terrible agony, but nothing happened. Kylo Ren said nothing more and they continued to march to the shuttle, docked not far away from the ancient abbey. 

Dopheld thanked all the gods in the galaxy. 

  
  


🌘🌘🌘

  
  


Rey didn't mention who she had just met. She didn't know why, but she kept the information about Kylo Ren, the knight and, most importantly, Dopheld Mitaka, to herself. She met him when they were very young, at school. He was her oldest friend. But he was a ranked officer in the First Order. She didn't know how the others would react to this information. She wasn't either willing to let them judge this relationship. For now. Dopheld was a very personal subject, but if they found him again, she would definitely have some explaining to do.

Han suggested they all travel to the Praxeum. The mission on Earth had ended and it was time for the Jedi to file a report with their Masters . Rey was a little anxious. She had never left Earth before and she didn't want to go to a place full of Jedi Masters. Feryaid must have sensed her discomfort because when they were preparing for departure he took her aside.

“While we’re at the Praxeum, if you don't want to talk to the Masters, stay close to Han and the _Falcon_. They don't like him. He's one of the best pilots in the galaxy and he's not a Force-Sensitive.” Rey looked at him raising an eyebrow. “Yes, you can say it: what a bunch of jerk asses.”

Rey smiled. She liked that relaxed smiling Jedi. If all them had been like him, maybe she would have come when they first came to Earth. But the reality was very different from fiction. They boarded a short later. She crossed Finn on his way to the medbay to check on Chewbacca. 

“Are you ok, Rey?”

“Yes... it’s just... Maz said something weird to me: take care of the _Falcon_. But she has found her owner. It makes no sense.”

“She’s a weird woman. Who knows?” 

Rey wasn't sure; something bothered her. It was like an itch in the back of her skull. She went to the cockpit. Feryaid was in one of the back seats checking the engines with Han in the pilot seat. The co-pilot place was waiting for her. She sat and Han smiled at her. It was a cocky smile, one which had enchanted more people in the galaxy than stories in bad cantinas can tell. But it was warm. 

“Ok, the hyperspace lane to the Praxeum is close to the moon. We are going there slowly and once we’re on the good track, we’ll jump to lightspeed. Any questions?” There were none. “Wow, it's weird not having to calculate the coordinates to the jump while running.”

“We are still on Earth, uncle.”

Han laughed. Rey still didn't know why the T-Fighters pursued them or where the Resistance was on her planet, but she hoped they had nothing to do with them. They had other, more important things, to consider. Like right now - she was leaving Earth. She had never left her homeworld before. She thought that maybe she would need something like a passport or a paper, but no one said anything. She had her passport buried at the bottom of her bag, but now she found that idea a little ridiculous.

When everyone was inside the _Millennium Falcon_ (Rey didn't quite believe she was inside one of the most famous ships in the galaxy) Han gave her the signal to depart. The ascension was smooth but, when they pierced the clouds, Feryaid breathed, “It’s always impressive - the serenity of the stars.”

But Rey wasn't listening. 

“Look at her.” She sighed. “She’s beautiful!”

Han and Feryaid followed the direction of her gaze. They could see Earth from space. Just a tiny part of the round blue planet where Rey was born. They could glimpse the seas, the clouds, all that had seemed to her so distant, now at her fingertips. She just needed to reach out and touch it. Rey felt like a giant ... but so tiny at the same time. She was trapped in the cockpit, a narrow place, with two other people, and Earth was there, marvellous, silent, impressive, defiant. There was something in her homeworld that called to her, inviting her to challenge. She would have fought whole armies to protect her. She couldn't help it; something in her seemed to push her, wanting to say:

_You are from a warrior planet. We are not frightened by anything; we are not cowed by anyone. We challenge when we have to challenge. We fight when we have to fight. We are strong for those who cannot be strong. But always remember, when you are done: come home._

Rey could almost see the smug smile of Earth before they leaped intohyperspace.

🌘🌘🌘

“So... the Praxeum is in a giant Mexican pyramid?”

Rey was trying to process the image she was seeing and Feryaid was trying to avoid her being killed by someone who could have heard her. He was pretty nervous. The mission hadn't gone as well as he had imagined and now he was facing a treasure hunt with Kylo Ren as an enemy. He remembered the conversation quickly whispered during the flight. 

“You have met Kylo Ren, haven’t you?” he asked Rey.

“And he’s your famous cousin Ben.” Feryaid was about to argue but she didn't let him. “Oh, don't deny it! Your Force-Signatures are so similar it’s frightening. The only difference is that he's in the Dark Side and you in the Light. We don't have the time to argue, but I have the first riddle complete thanks to him.”

“Don’t say a word to anyone! We’ll discuss that with Finn, in private, at the Praxeum. But first, when we arrive, I have to give my report to the Masters.”

“I do not envy you.”

And there they were - at the entrance of the temple, once used as a Rebel base. Ben had tried to explain all the interesting history about the Massassi who built the temple to Feryaid, but he switched off every time, bored to death. He wondered if showingmore interest in Ben’s passions could have avoided the final tragedy. He wasn't sure. Maybe?

Feryaid left Rey with Han, playing with the _Falcon_ at some more than needed repairs. Han didn't like the Jedi either. He couldn't blame him. He knew that a part of his uncle blamed them for the disappearance of his only son and his brother-in-law. The other part, probably a much larger one, blamed himself. Feryaid knew that he never would forgive himself for letting Ben disappear and become Kylo Ren. Because that was what happened: his sweet, silent, shy cousin disappeared one night, and the next thing he knew was that the new master of the Knights of Ren had an awful physical and Force-aligned similarity with his cousin. He didn't want to believe it - but he must. 

Lost in his thoughts, he arrived at the entrance to the observation room, on the top of the pyramid. The room of the High Jedi Council. Feryaid and the Council had a lot of bad words through the years. He knew they didn't like him because he was a Skywalker, a rebel by nature. He wouldn't be the one to contradict them. He was proud of his family, the good and the bad. At nineteen his aunt led an alliance of rebels against an entire empire. An empire controlled by her father, a Sith who always put his heart before everything else. And in this generation, he was curious to see what kind of trails Kylo Ren would put all these pretentious Jedi through.

“Feryaid, maybe you should stop smiling before entering the Council’s room.” He looked at Finn curiously. “Your smirk is scary.”

“I was just thinking of the problems that Kylo Ren would present for thefuture of that bunch of idiots.”

“.... just what I said; don't smile.”

And they entered the room. Proportionally,it was small compared to the base,but it had the best views of all. You could see for miles. The altitude gave you a serene sensation, but this was lost on the twelve people in the room. They didn’t like Feryaid, and the feeling was mutual. The shorter, the better for this meeting. He explained everything as quickly as possible. 

“You are telling us that you not only do not have the lightsaber, but you also let Kylo Ren escape without capturing him to face punishment for his crimes?” said Master Yeapus, a very aggressive [Nautolan](https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/starwars/images/4/4c/Nautolan_NEGAS.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20061205192252).

“The treasure hunt is barely my fault. If you want to blame someone, you are two thousand years late.”

“We have given you this assignment. Continue this insubordination and it will be taken away from you.”

“As if you could! I’m the only one who knows how Kylo Ren thinks. And I’m as fast as him. If you want to beat him someday, you’ll need me on your side, not his.” 

“Fortunately for us, you are more inclined to the light rather than the dark.” It was Master Yago, an old [Yarkora](https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/starwars/images/b/bf/Yarkora_NEGAS.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20061129202255), who spoke. “I advise you to meditate on this incident and quickly decipher the solution to the riddle before Kylo Ren. Arguing now is useless.” He cut off the other Masters. “A fight between us will only benefit our competitors. Feryaid is right. We need him if we want to retrieve the Skywalker lightsaber.” The Jedi Knight clenched his fists at their flippant talk of a relic of his family. He remained silent. “But you have to learn respect, young one.”

Feryaid wanted to tell them that respect must be earned, and they hadn’t done anything to earn that! However, he said nothing. He was dismissed as an uncomfortable subject they didn't want to face. Feryaid stormed out of the Jedi Council wanting to punch the nearest soft thing.

“I’m impressed. You are still a Knight, Master.”

He stopped. The answer was so painfully obvious that he was surprised Finn didn’t see it.

“They don't want to fight two equally powerful Skywalkers fallen to the Dark Side. If they are already afraid of Kylo Ren alone, they don't dare to image what we can do together, free of all those stupid Jedi’s useless rules...” 

He let a few seconds pass, imagining himself side by side with his cousin, destroying those idiots on the Council. But then he thought about the younglings - the ones who always made him smile, pulled him back from darker territories. They were the real future of the Jedi.

“Come on, let's see if the Academy is still in one piece with Rey and my uncle free to reach the young ones.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here some more info:  
> \- [The Nautolans](https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Nautolan/Legends)  
> \- [The Yarkora](https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Yarkora/Legends)  
> \- [The Jedi Praxeum](https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Jedi_Praxeum).  
> \- That is the [Praxeum](https://dawnofthejedi.files.wordpress.com/2010/06/untitled-4.jpg) during its days as a Rebel base. But it shows very well all its complexity and if you are curious some part of its history.  
> \- [The Massassi](https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Massassi/Legends)
> 
> For those who didn't know. The difference between ”Canon” and ”Legends”: before the release of Episode VII, it was a all universe, the Expanded Universe, created after the release of The Return of the Jedi. The lives of the Golden Trio were very different from what we know (for example, Luke married the incredible [Mara Jade](https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Mara_Jade_Skywalker) and they have a son, [Ben Skywalker](https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Ben_Skywalker) [cough]). All this EU was erased when The Force Awekens was released. It wasn't ”Canon” anymore, it has become ”Legends”. In Wookieepedia they have preserved all the history of the EU under the label ”Legends”. Some characters have a double history, as Luke Skywalker, and you can read them clicking on the button in the at the top of the article.
> 
> And this is it for today. Hope you have enjoyed it, you can find me in [Twitter ](https://twitter.com/Himilce02648519) for nonsense, news and updates. Comment always are welcome and... May the Force be with you, always 🥰


	4. Chapter4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Where you see a how Rey can fight.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, I want to Thank You with all my heart my beta. She's been the loveliest thing!!!

Feryaid blinked in astonishment. 

“Ok, the Masters killed me and now I’m dead.”

“You wish.”

He turned his head and looked into the eyes of a young [Togruta](https://ibb.co/XWpfT0m), Corla Vaash. Her purple eyes smiled up at him. 

“What happened?”

“She’s incredibly good with the kids.”

That was more than obvious. In front of his eyes, _all_ the younglings of the Praxeum were washing their hands. Even those with more than two hands and the furry ones, who hated washing their hands most of all.

“What did she do? Threaten them with a blaster?”

At that moment a tiny [ithorian](https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/starwars/images/b/b7/Pypey.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20151205042604) couldn't reach the tap and Rey lifted a stool with the Force to aid him. It was a very sweet scene. She helped him wash his hands as if she had done so a hundred times. When he finished, she dried him with a towel and asked an older child to walk with him to the dining room for supper. 

“Yes, she has totally beaten them into submission with the only thing they don’t get here : love.”

Corla gave him a sympathetic smile. When she had finished, Rey approached the two of them. She seemed to already know Corla. 

“Kids to the dining room, _Falcon_ alive, and the riddle solved. I think we can consider that a job well done.”

Feryaid wasn't sure he heard correctly what she said.

“You cracked the riddle? How? We only have part of it!”

“Not me.” Her smile could have melted Hoth. “The younglings did. With a little help from someone unexpected, we had all the riddle” She recited it for him. “So, I thought, instead of dying trying to solve it alone, twenty brains worked better than one. The only payment was a tour in the _Millennium Falcon_. We were lucky; they behaved really well.”

Corla snorted.

“You threatened to feed them to the Sarlak of Tatooine if they left a single scratch on the ship.”

”Not that they believed me! They barely heard. They laughed and jumped into the _Falcon_.”

”And yet,” intervened Feryaid, “you made them wash their hands and go quietly to supper. Corla is right, you are good with kids.”

“After supper, when I’ve managed to put everyone to bed, I can show you around” Corla offered.

” _I can show you the world_ ,” hummed Rey during a moment. Then she realized that neither of the two knew the song she was singing and stopped. “Thank you, Corla. This place is amazing, but seems to be huge!”

“It was a rebel base during Imperial times, so it has to be. However, the most interesting part is that it was built by the Sith! I’m not an expert, but it's quite a historical building we have here.”

Feryaid was sure that Corla also remembered that Ben was their historical expert. None of them had ever listened to him and his endless speeches about the history of the building. A sad look in his friend’s eyes confirmed that she was also thinking of him. He had to change the subject.

“And what was the place the children discovered? I didn't have the time to think about it, but they solved the riddle very quickly.”

“The Jedi Temple on Coruscant. Most specifically, the Sith Shrine it was built over. I didn't know this...”

Feryaid was shocked. It wasn’t as if the information was hidden, but not many knew that the Jedi Temple in Coruscant was built over a Sith Shrine in the hopes of blocking its darkness. A shrine built over a light side vergence. Those kids were incredible. The Sith Shrine fit perfectly with the riddle: 

“ _I was built upon the light, and the light upon me._ ” 

The shrine over the vergence and the temple over the shrine.

“ _And this light was crushed by the twisted darkness_.” 

The temple was used as the imperial palace during the reign of Palpatine.

“ _But they never prayed to me even if my name suggests that function._ ” 

It’s the shrine. The palace could also have been suggested by the two first sentences, along with many other other places in the galaxy, but there weren’t a great number of Sith Shrines so deeply layered in the light. 

Then something hit him. It was a race, and running it with them was Kylo Ren, formerly known as Ben Solo, their databank of knowledge in the Praxeum. If the kids had broken the riddle, that meant he probably had too. The lightsaber of the Skywalkers would probably end up in the hands of whoever won the race; they needed to get to Coruscant as quickly as possible. 

“You’re right.” Rey frowned as he shared his concerns. “But first we have to talk with Finn about what we are going to do with Kylo Ren if we meet him again, and... I have some things to share in private.”

Feryaid suspected that she didn't want to speak in front of Corla. He could have told her that she was totally worth of trust, but he understood her reservations .The togruta was outside their group. Corla knew how to read between the lines and gave them her excuses as she walked away, leaving them alone.   
  


🌘🌘🌘

“So… you have met my cousin. He’s nice, isn’t he?”

“More than some Masters here.” Rey smirked. Feryaid glanced at her, astonished. “At the Battle of Earth, ten years ago, I met a couple of Jedi Masters. One still gives me nightmares, but the other... not so much.” Her gaze wandered off. “The Force around Kylo Ren was intense and menacing, but I felt I could face him at any time. If we are talking about some of your masters, I’d say give me five Kylo Rens to fight, and I would do it gladly before having to speak with them .” 

Rey didn't know what Feryaid was thinking, but the image of her with five Kylo Rens had to be a bit hilarious, judging by the little smile at the corner of his mouth. She couldn't ask him because Finn appeared at that moment, balancing two trays loaded down with an enticing assortment of Praxium specialties. It suddenly struck Rey that she was famished! She thanked him and attacked her dish like a piranha. The two men looked at her strangely.

“What?! I’m hungry!” 

They smiled kindly and ate without another word. When they ended, Feryaid brought up the topic of the holocron again.

“I think it was a good mission. We retrieved the holocron, Rey has already solved the riddle, and now we know what we have to do to find the lightsaber.” He settled his chin on his hand. “Which, now that I think of it, when the woman spoke, I had a vision.”

“Me too!” said Finn.

“Well, that makes three of us.”

They shared a look between the three of them, waiting for someone to speak about something so fallible as a vision. Feryaid was the first.

“In my vision, I was in this jungle, with Rey. I’m not entirely sure about what we were doing, but I like to think we were training.”

“The vision was colourless?” Rey asked. The young Jedi confirmed. “Yes, I had it too. I don't know how long yours lasted, but mine was only for a couple of seconds. Not much more...”

“Mine was in a forest,” Intervened Finn. “I think it was snowing. I was facing Kylo Ren and his menacing cross-guarded red lightsaber. You were there too, Rey, unconscious. I don't know what that means.”

“I had a part of that vision as well. ” The two men looked at Rey with owl-wide eyes. She tried to not smile. “My vision was a series of scenes, but none were connected. They began with a couple arguing, though I don’t know who they were. It continued with the combat between you and me, Feryaid; then, I was chased by Kylo Ren, in the forest. You were nowhere to be seen, Finn. Maybe you would find me later after I had been caught by him. In the vision, I managed to escape to a very large room where I saw a woman looking at me. I took a door and ended up in a ship and saw a man in the window of what I think was his quarters. I don't know who any of them were.” Rey didn't want to talk about the seductive smile or the last words she had heard in the vision. Those felt too personal.

Feryaid thought for a moment.

“Maybe they are people you will meet during this quest. It's only a theory, but maybe all the people connected to this quest who are Force-Sensitive received a vision when the holocron opened.”

“If that’s true, when I talked to him, Kylo Ren didn’t mention it.”

“Speaking of that, it's incredible you are still alive!”

“Not so much, Finn. You are still so new in the ways of the Force that you couldn't feel it yet, but Rey is incredibly strong in the Force.” Feryaid drank a little water. “All Dark-users will first try to turn a strong one. If that doesn't work, _then_ they will try to kill them. For now, her novelty and strength saved her life. Can't promise it will work next time.” He looked at Rey. “You need to become someone who could face him. A staff is useless. You need a lightsaber and training.” She began to argue, but he stopped her. “I’m not asking you to become a Jedi, even if that door is still open, but I’m friends with the master who trains the younglings. If he gives his approval, maybe there is a way for you to borrow a more useful weapon?. Will you accept it?”

Rey remembered the vision of her being chased by Kylo Ren, the possibility of being knocked out with little fight and Finn having to defend her, the sensation of fear she sensed during her vision running from room to room. She didn't want to be like that. She was from a warrior planet, her mother was a warrior who had died in battle, never running from a fight even if she preferred to solve a conflict before it began. She didn't want to be a delicate flower in front of any problem, and something was telling her that Kylo Ren would be the least of those problems. 

“Very well, take me to the master.” 

  
  


🌘🌘🌘

  
  


The master was in a training arena outside, in an area situated about a mile away from the main building. Rey couldn't believe it. What was the reason for having a massive edifice, with hundreds of rooms and miles of space, if they had to train _outside_! It didn't make any sense! They could train in an enormous room! Surely they had space inside the tremendous pyramid they occupied. But no! The main place for lightsaber training was in the middle of the jungle after a mile of walking. No wonder it was Finn’s least favourite subject.

Rey mumbled her displeasure as they arrived. She saw ... well she didn't know very well what she was seeing: a maze in the air, with paths connected between them, and a tower for observation, all in the middle of the jungle and surrounded by plants. She didn't want to enter that place and less to be put to the test by a mad man - mad alien? - who liked to play in places like those. 

Every single moment she was glad she had never come when she was a child.

“You train the younglings in there? You’re barking mad.”

Feryaid laughed. One of his clear laughs that she hadn't heard since they left Earth.

“No. This is the playground for the most experienced. The ones who already have their lightsabers and know how to move with the Force. Look, you can see the master training the triplets.”

Rey looked at the bizarre maze and three young human women, not much older than her, fighting someone covered in wrappings. The three women where identically beautiful and blond. Only their hairstyle could distinguished one of the other: a different style of ponytail. Rey didn't recognize the species of the person in wrappins: shorter than the women, with three fingers, probably reptilian by the colour of the hands. She couldn't see the face because a mask covered it. It resembled the old gas masks from World War I. She heard the master scold the three apprentices because they didn't try harder, with more fugue, or in true combat form .

After ten minutes, the master decided to stop.

“It’s useless! If you're not going to try to surpass yourself from yesterday, you’ll never improve. Train between yourselves; we have a request from Knight Skywalker.”

The master marched slowly where they were. The triplets didn't seem to be pleased, but they did what they were told to. Feryaid saluted the master with respect and a smile and talked to him a little. Finn did the same and shortly after they brought him to Rey. 

“Rey, I present to you Master Teedo. He comes from Jakku. He's the master who teaches sword techniques to all the Jedi, including Uncle Luke when he was here. Master, this is Rey Sandslider, the one who I’ve told you wants to help me with my mission.”

Master Teedo looked at her intensely. After what seemed to be hours, but couldn't have been more than a few minutes, he said, “You have _R’iia_ in you.” 

She had _what_ in her? Rey had to count to ten to not say a very inappropriate word. 

“Have you grown up on a desert planet?”

“No ... but ... I was born in the desert. I lived there until I was seven years old.”

She looked to Feryaid for more explanations.

“ _R’iia_ is the goddess of the [Teedos](https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/starwars/images/b/b8/Teedo-TFUVD.png/revision/latest?cb=20160509034726). You see, Jakku is a desert planet, more than Tatooine. The Teedos are one of the rare natives from the planet. _R’iia_ is the embodiment of the desert; they believe the sandstorm is her breath, the _X’us’R’iia_. If he thinks that you have in you his goddess, that is not a small thing.”

Master Teedo looked at Rey.

“Knight Skywalker asked us if we would agree to loan you a weapon. Technically, it is possible. We have gathered ancient artifacts to help younglings and their masters in missions. But you are not a Jedi or a youngling. Not a single Master in the Council would agree to this request.” A stone fell in Rey’s stomach. She had hoped he would help them. But Master Teedo was not done. “ However, we are the Master of the Younglings and the Sword. If the Master of the Vault agrees, the Council can go _____” Rey didn't understand exactly what he said, but he would have impressed Jack the Ripper, a butcher in her neighborhood with a very bad potty mouth. 

“But first,” he paused. She sensed a smile that she didn't like. “We want to know if you can defend yourself. You see, we would never give a lightsaber to Finn, and we know he will be a fine swordsman in the future. Just, not now. We want a fight against you.” 

This was Rey's nightmare. If she had understood everything, the Jedi would let her have an old lightsaber? It was insane! She didn't know anything about lightsabers, how to fight with them or what to do to not end without one arm less. She was completely afraid. She wished one of her friends would say something in her defense, but they didn't. She sighed and followed the master into the arena, leaving Feryaid and Finn at the borders. 

“What is your preferred weapon?”

“The staff.” It was the only one she could ever afford to have, but she wasn't going to say it out loud.

“Perfect. We’ll begin with the staff and then continue to the sword. Younglings have little lightsabers, not very powerful, but we are under the impression that they will be too little for you. For this fight, we will use a wooden staff and a sword.”

🌘🌘🌘

“Hi, Feryaid!”

Two hurried hushes welcomed the salute from Corla. Feryaid and Finn were glued to the borders of the arena, absorbed by the combat they were witnessing. Corla didn't understand their shushing at first, until she looked more closely at the arena.

“Is that...?”

“Rey. Yes.” 

She fought like a hurricane. Jumping from high to high, using the lianas for swinging, sometimes to try to trap master Teedo; the jungle was her ally and she used the leaves to lure her adversary and try to hurt him. Her sword was her last resort, only used for defending herself and making the master fall from his feet. The staff had been used in her hands barely a standard minute. Feryaid had never seen such passionate combat in his life.

“She has just used the dry ground to form a cage?” Finn couldn't believe his eyes. ”Where did she learn that?”

Feryaid was impressed, and it wasn't easy to impress him with combat skills. The fight lasted five more standard minutes, where they saw Rey attempting to entrap the master in the ground, making the thick walls fall, defending herself from a brutal series of strokes, and landing on the ground unarmed after flying more than twenty meters. When Master Teedo seemed to be pleased, he captured Rey with sand and lianas and waited patiently until she understood that the fight had ended.

“Good, good. Good fight.” Feryaid didn't remember the last time the master had said that. “One last thing young Rey. You see the red ribbon in the top of the tower?” The only thing she could move was her head, so she answered with an affirmative movement. “Can you untie the ribbon and bring it to us?”

Master Teedo released Rey but she didn't move. She only concentrated in the red ribbon and a few seconds later, the object was flying in her direction. She offered it to him with a tired smile. Feryaid looked at Corla, red with shame. It had taken them years to understand that the exercise was not about their ability to climb the tower, but more to untie a delicate ribbon and make it fly to them from a long distance. And they had his cousin to think with them. His pride was injured, but he smiled at that. 

“What do you know about lightsabers, Rey? Honestly.”

Feryaid, Finn, Corla, and the Triplets had joined them. Rey looked at Feryaid. He smiled at her encouragingly.

“Not much. They come in three colors - red, blue and green - and they can cut everything.”

The sisters tried to laugh, but Corla flung a small stone with the Force at each head that stopped their laughter in their throats. If looks could kill, the Togruta would have died instantly. Feryaid intervened.

“May I, Master?” Master Teedo nodded his approval. For the Teedo, speaking in Basic was difficult and the history of the lightsaber required a long speech. “The sword is most commonly defined as the _life of the Jedi_ . In the core of the lightsaber is a crystal.” He ignited his own sword. It was a peaceful green color. “Usually, the crystal is a kyber crystal, one which is alive. The Jedi bonds with their crystal when they are young, in a ceremony called _The Gathering._ Before that, the crystal is without color, without power. After, we meditate together to create the most perfect lightsaber which will fight the best in our hands. A red lightsaber is a kyber crystal which is wounded or in pain. But like all living things, it can be healed. However, it will never have his color again: it will be white. There are other colors, which are more rare, like magenta.”

“There are also dark blades, aren’t there? Is the kyber crystal also injured in this case?”

Feryaid started, surprised. “You’ve heard about the Darksaber?” Rey looked puzzled. “It isn't a kind of lightsaber, it’s a unique saber with a core made of a special kyber crystal: obsidian. Normally, it's used only as a rock for crafting weapons in places like Mustafar, but in the hands of Tarre Vysla, it became a kyber crystal that gave life to the only darksaber known. As far as I know, the crystal is not injured and the sword is in the hands of its true owners, the Mandalorians. They are our natural adversaries in combat. I don't even want to imagine a Mandalorian with Jedi skills. Deadly.” Master Teedo cleared his throat. Feryaid came back to the topic. “Sorry, I have a bit of a passion for Mandalore. As I was saying - the sword is the life of the Jedi, their companion, and the one with whom they have made a bond. It is an important object that should protect them all their life. We do not take the lightsaber as a joke. And, if you must know, there are some things that a lightsaber can't cut, such as beskar, the metal from which a Mandalorian’s armor is made. But there are not many more. Truly, Mandalorians were made for facing Jedi.” 

Corla stepped in to intervene before Feryaid could begin a talk about the compatibility in combat of the Jedi and the Mandalorian.

“The Jedi have seven techniques, also called forms. Each one has advantages and disadvantages. Normally, a Jedi specializes only in one form. Master Teedo has the ability to see in the younglings what combat form will be the best for them. Until now, he has never failed. And I’m very curious, because he has foreseen that the best form for Finn will be the first one, Shii-Cho, usually taught only to beginners.”

“Finn is ex-military. The form is direct and aggressive. Maybe Finn it's what it needs to become a respected form.” said Feryaid thoughtfully.

“That’s very well analyzed.” It was master Teedo who spoke. “Why don't you all try to guess the form best suited to young Rey?”

“Okay” Feryaid smiled. He already had an idea. “I will say the Fourth form, Ataru. It needs a lot of energy, great control of the Force, and quick moves. Rey possesses all these qualities.”

“I don't think Ataru will be her Form.” Corla looked at Rey. “I see her more as a duelist. The Second form, Makashi, will be hers, no doubt.”

A laugh came from the triplets.

“Are you crazy? I’m a user of Makashi; it will never be her style!” Feryaid wasn't sure which sister had said it, but his money would be on the middle one, the most forward, Laurette. “I’m sure she's a brute; Just like a Skywalker, she’ll be an adept to the Fifth form.”

Feryaid felt a little insulted. He was a user of the Fifth form, in both disciplines; and yes, the majority of the Skywalkers were masters of it, but not all of them. He was about to reply to the insult to his family when Master Teedo spoke, mentioning that one of them hadn't said anything about what his guess was.

“She uses the staff more for attack, and the sword for defense,” rationalized Finn, with a tiny voice. “I think she will use the Third form, Soresu? It's the best tactic for her form of combat. Attacking with the staff, her preferred weapon, and using the lightsaber for defense. Soresu would be perfect because it is a form mostly based on defense.”

They could almost hear Master Teedo laughing.

“And you doubt he will do an excellent job with the Shii-Cho form?” Corla was as red as her red skin let her be. “He’s the only one who has analyzed her words and form of combat. He is right. Rey will be a master of the Third form, Soresu.” Everyone looked very impressed. There weren’t many younglings destined to be masters of soresu. “And with that, you have our blessing to ask the Master of the Vault’s permission, to see if a lightsaber will be provided to protect her.”

Feryaid congratulated Rey, but someone was not so happy with the news.

“Excuse me! Am I the only one who wants to know _where she_ learned to fight like that?”

The whole group turned to the triplets. It was Laurette who spoke again.

“That is an excellent question.” Feryaid looked at the master, shaken. “Your fellow companion is right to put her doubts forward. Misplaced trust can cost your mission, young knight.”

“I would not doubt Rey’s heart, even if it cost me my life, Master! She has offered her help, and if that comes with mysterious combat skills, we are not the ones to judge her or her past. And if you have something else to say, Laurette, come and say it.”

It seemed Laurette did, and Feryaid was ready to fight whoever had something to say - master, knight or padawan.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is it. Thank you for reading. Hope you have enjoyed. The triplets come from the pop-culture but, you know where? 
> 
> Notes:  
> \- [The Togruta](https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Togruta/Legends)  
> \- [The Ithorian](https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Ithorian)  
> \- [A Vergence in the Force](https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Teedo%E2%80%9D>The%20Teedo</a>.%20The%20Teedos%20have%20a%20collective%20mind.%20The%20only%20one%20we%20have%20officially%20see%20is%20the%20one%20who%20speaks%20to%20Rey%20in%20The%20Force%20Awakens.%20He%20speaks%20in%20Teedospeak.%20Master%20Teedo%20speaks%20in%20Basic.%20I%20have%20take%20a%20little%20liberty%20here%20make%20him%20using%20the%20%E2%80%9Dwe%E2%80%9D.%0A-%20<a%20href=). The most famous one is Anakin Skywalker.  
> \- [Sith Shrine](https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Sith_shrine)  
> \- [The Darksaber](https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Darksaber). You really expect me to resist to not mention the most famous lightsaber with a non-standand color? So cute ^^  
> \- If you are curious, [here](https://kylorenvevo.tumblr.com/post/137995935206/hi-thea-would-you-mind-discussing-lightsaber) Thea, the great [Diasterisms](https://archiveofourown.org/users/diasterisms/pseuds/diasterisms) has made a summary of the 7 forms of combat of the Jedi. If you don't know her work... what are you doing here? Run to her! She's great.  
> She explains very well all the Forms, but here are the links to the wookieepedia:  
> \- [Form I, Shii-Cho](https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Form_I/Legends)  
> \- [Form II, Makashi](https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Form_II/Legends)  
> \- [Form III, Soresu](https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Form_III/Legends)  
> \- [Form IV, Ataru](https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Form_IV/Legends)  
> \- [Form V, Shien/Djem So](https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Form_V/Legends)
> 
> [This](https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/starwars/images/c/cd/Finn%27s_Jedi_training.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20200504162128)is my idea of the place where Master Teedo trains the Jedi. It's from [the Jedi Praxeum](https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Jedi_Praxeum) from the EU.  
> 


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When Rey explains where she had learned how to fight like she had, and she received two very special gifts....

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And, as always, I want to thank my wonderful beta Ash, without who this chapter will be, frankly, awful >_< you are the best!

The tension was at its top. Feryaid looked murderously at the triplets. 

“It’s okay, Feryaid! I’ll tell her where I’ve learned to fight like I have.”

He looked at Rey, indignant. She had no obligation to tell anything to anyone. Not even to him, and certainly not to an idiot of a Jedi Knight who thought she had the right to mistrust someone who had offered her help willingly without asking anything in return. He would not accept this situation!

Rey came closer to him and put a hand on his shoulder.

“Your anger and your trust in me are more valuable than her mistrust.” He felt a certain calm coming over him. “And it's not a secret. I don't mind sharing that part of my past. It made me strong in a way she can never understand. And I hope she never will.” She looked at Laurette. “If you want to know, from thirteen to seventeen, I was chased on my homeworld, Earth, like an animal.” Laurette had the decency to look horrified. “After the First Order and the Jedi left only destruction there, the other inhabitants believed the Force-Sensitives were the reason for all the deaths. They hunted us like we were animals that only deserved to be extinct. No help came from the governments or the authorities. Everyone had lost someone after three years of galactic destruction in a defenseless world. I don't know what kind of miracle made someone come to our rescue. They made the hunting stop. Today we are protected, but we pay a large tribute for that. The human race is one of the most sensitive to the Force in the galaxy, and my planet was a huge focus. The First Order left around two hundred of us; twenty-four survived The Hunt. And last month, I went to the funeral of one of them. Which means twenty-three of us remain. Now you know.”

A heavy silence fell in the arena. Feryaid knew that the past of Earth wasn't bright; he knew the Jedi had brought woe to the inhabitants of the planet, and most especially to the Force-Sensitives, if Rey still had to hide, but he had never imagined it to be so harsh. It was a textbook Purge, like the one the Jedi suffered at the beginning of the Galactic Empire. They should have never had permitted that, not again. If someone knew what it was to suffer persecution and almost extinction, it was the Jedi.

He knew that Rey would never accept an apology or pity from his part. She had said it herself - this experience was part of her past and had shaped her into who she was today. He took her hand to show her that he was there if she needed something. Too many things had never been spoken and his cousin had disappeared; he didn't want to make the same mistakes again. 

“Whatever you need, we’re here now. Even if it's only me.”

“You were always there, Feryaid,” she smiled.

“No ... not always. We should have returned, to check on the survivors, not left the planet alone. We thought it was the best thing to do after the First Order... we were _so_ wrong.”

“And how many masters in the Council do you think would agree with you?”

The question came from outside the group. They all turned around and saw two people - a human man and a [Toydarian](https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/starwars/images/6/6e/Wattoep2promotionalfull.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20081222024850), masters Noahand and Jakalo. It was Jakalo who had spoken.

“There is no need for such a useless debate in what we should or shouldn't have done. The only thing we can do is continue to march to the future. Looking into the past will give us nothing useful.” 

Master Noahand was always one who made Feryaid sick. His speech, once again, was the worst.

“And what about taking responsibility for what you have done?” 

Feryaid looked at Rey, very concerned. The Jedi had already heard those kinds of words, five years ago. It was this kind of reproach that Ben had tossed to the masters shortly before leaving the Academy. He could understand the rage in both cases. Rey had to run for her life in a moment when her priority should have been romantic problems and when the next test should have been taken. And the people who should have protected her were trying to avoid the subject like a bunch of cowards! The Jedi weren't supposed to be cowards, they were supposed to be good people, there to protect the galaxy! Peacekeepers who swore to protect justice. Where was the justice in letting a fourteen-year-old girl run for her life on an abandoned planet, when you know that so much destruction had come? And they didn't even try to give a miserable apology for that! What despicable beings!!

A hand grazed his cheek. Feryaid looked and saw the beautiful eyes of Corla. She smiled at him. An inch of concern darkened her gaze. He took her hand and closed his eyes to feel her warmth on his face. She was so soft. His tumultuous feelings disappeared like a stain washed by clear water. He could breathe again. He didn't notice how he was drowning.

“The utility, master Noahand, is asking for forgiveness, because Jedis can make mistakes too,” Corla said. “A person that never learns from his past is condemned to repeat it. And we must also admit when we are wrong. More than anyone. Pride can never be a Jedi attribute.”

The master looked outraged, but master Jakalo laughed.

“The next generation is bold, apparently.” They exchanged looks. “Don’t look at me like that. You’ve earned the criticism. It won't harm you. If no one challenges the past generation, they can’t be renewed in the Order.” Master Noahand didn't dignify this with an answer. “Master Teedo, why do I have the impression that you have something to ask me?”

“It’s not us, it's Knight Skywalker and his young helper.”

Since the interruption of the two masters, Rey hadn't said a word. Feryaid noticed that she was uncharacteristically quiet. He explained the situation to master Jakalo and what he expected he would accept.

“If Master Teedo has already given his permission for young Rey to have a relic from our Vault, I’m hardly someone to deny it.” Master Noahand started, about to protest very hard. “ _But_ , she will have to be accepted by an artifact. I don't have to remind you, Knight Skywalker, that in the Vault there is no such thing as a saberstaff, and she's not trained to wield a sword. I really doubt any artifact would agree to help her.”

The small smile that Master Noahand gave to Feryaid almost made him take out his sword and cut him in half. He was perfectly capable of doing it, he knew that. His ability as a swordsman was very good. He could handle Master Teedo and made progress every season. When Ben was still at the Praxeum, he liked the freedom his presence gave to the lightsaber training. The adrenaline of fighting each other, of finding the openings and flaws in their defenses. It was a game that always ended in laughs and a healthy meal in the dining room. Now it was a painful memory prodded by that joke of a Master.

He was in that dark place when he felt a light. He turned and looked at Rey. She gave him a soft smile, as though she was sensing his despair and dark feelings. She radiated a sense of tranquility, of well-being, that gave his heart a breath in the suffocating place it was, _again_. 

He would have to work on his thoughts; they were too wild, too dangerous, too dark. He knew well where that kind of path could bring him.

“Well, there is an adage on my home-world: _fortes Fortuna iuvat:_ the goddess Fortune favours the bold. If I don't try, I’ll never know. Let me try, Master”

🌘🌘🌘

  
  


Rey woke up the next day in a bed way too big for her. She remembered the shadow of the sweetness of two arms being wrapped around her. She wasn't sure if she recognized their warmth but she was sure she had woken up with a tiny smile on her lips. They were cozy and warm, like coming home after a hard day scavenging. She could almost see the glimpse of a smile in the corner of her vision. She hoped she could see that smile again the next morning. 

The first thing she felt when she climbed out of bed was the cold. She was from the desert; she felt more than anything the great change in temperatures. And between the sweet warmth of her bed and the freezing cold of the room, there was a world of difference. 

She ran to the large closet next to her. Most of it was empty. The night before she hadn't had the time to unpack anything before passing out. The masters had chosen her room, at which Feryaid made a strange face, and they almost locked her inside. She wasn't one to complain. She was so tired that she fell asleep almost instantly. Now she faced an empty closet, looking for something to put on, even if it was one of those awful ponchos.

“If Dal saw me now.”

She chuckled a little. She hadn't thought of Dal in months. It had to be all those things happening. But she wasn't too proud to wear a poncho now for this. But Lady Luck was on her side, because behind a blanket she saw a big sweater. It was black and soft. She couldn't repress an impulse to smell it. She liked it immediately! She put on the sweater, but it was the size of a dress. And following after, she saw another problem that made her swear so loud Feryaid would have made her wash her mouth out with soap.

“Please tell me I didn’t sleep in the room of a dead giant?”

Feryaid almost spit out his breakfast bite when he saw her. She had run from her room to the dining area to ask him the ultimate question. Now, he looked at her with widening eyes. He looked to Corla, almost as shocked as him, but repressing a smile.

“Why do you ask that?”

She showed him a hole in the sweater at the level of her waist. She was most preoccupied. He smiled at it fondly.

“Don’t worry, the guy is alive. And yes, he's pretty much a giant.” Now it was his turn to try not to smile too much. “You slept in my cousin’s room and that,” he smiled mischievously, “is one of his training sweaters. I made a hole during one sparring season. No harm done.”

Rey tried to not die of horror. She was wearing a piece of clothing of Kylo Ren’s, and she had found his scent pleasant!! Put it back! Like now! You haven't read anything about it! Go back in time. This sweater is still lost in the closet, she isn't wearing it at all, and she hasn't sniffed anything and found nothing pleasant! _At all!!_

She was lucky that they knew only a tiny part of the story!! She needed a plan to leave the planet and never see anyone _ever again_.

.....

Finn brought more of that delicious Yavean food with a happily “good morning.” Her stomach growled.

.....

“Well... the sweater is mine now. If someone has something to say, I will only take it from Han Solo.”

......

Maybe she could stay. Dopheld Mitaka would have laughed at her “You move where your stomach takes you,” he said to her once. He was right.

......

“You would only take what from me?”

Han Solo appeared behind them. He was wearing the same clothes from the day before and a cocky smile that, if he was thirty years younger, would have had Rey falling for him in a second. It suited him so well. 

“Rey has been assigned to Ben’s bedroom. The masters said that we couldn't reserve it anymore. We have to move forward.”

“Really?” He sounded more amused than upset or sad. Han smiled at Rey mischievously “Congratulations, kid! You’re the first one I’ve ever heard has slept in my son’s bed.”

Rey choked on the food she was eating. 

_Red alert! Red alert! Abort! Abort! Let her come back to Earth!_

“I’m sure I’m definitely not the first one,” she tried to mumble while a whole armada of submarine sirens screamed in her head.

“Believe me, he wasn't exactly a playboy here.” 

A glimpse of sadness clouded Feryaid eyes. Rey wondered what could have happened. She hoped nothing close to her imagination. Three sets of laughter came from behind them.

“You can say that again!” The triplets! If it was not for Rey, they would have been in the stomach of Tatooine's Sarlak since the day before. “I’ve never seen a skinnier guy. Who could ever be interested in him?” 

And they laughed in front of his family and friends. Something snapped in Rey.

“That was five years ago,” she snarled, cutting off their laughter. “A lot of things change in five years. A teenager becomes an adult; a boy becomes a man. I don't know what kind of person wore this sweater, but I know what I saw a few days ago. The broad chest, the powerful hands, the raw strength. Maybe I’m not as trained as you in the matters of the Force, but I can surely tell when someone is strong and steady, when his Force-signature speaks for him so clearly that, even if he’s in the Dark Side, I’m not afraid of him losing control of his emotions. I don't know if I’ll lose a fight against him but it will be a great pleasure to fight him just by how he moves and how he controls himself. All of this, for me, is more appealing than the arrogance that I have witnessed in the day I have been here.”

“It sounds like you admires him?”

“It’s that wrong? Mortal enemies often admires each other. And he's worth the admiration.”

She looked at Han who made a little smile to her. The triplets ran away really indigned by Rey’s opinions. An atmosphere of gratitude planned over the group. Rey was happy to have helped. And she thought every word she said.

After a while, Corla tried to change the subject. _Kylo Ren’s body and coolness wasn't_ maybe the best breakfast subject.

“Yesterday, I thought you were going to kill Master Jakalo when he said that Rey could have access to the Vault in two days, Feryaid.”

“We are in a race! They know that. I’m sure Kylo Ren already knows the solution to the riddle. We don't have time to lose.”

“Feryaid, we don't have a ship, we barely have a plan, and we certainly don't have the resources of Kylo Ren.” Rey sounded calmer than she felt. Corla knew how to sink a mood. “Let’s give him a little advantage, we can worry about overtaking him later. The end of the race is our only priority. He's the fist of the First Order. He’ll certainly be called away to one matter or another. While you convince the Council to give you the resources we need, I’ll help Han with the repairs the _Falcon_ desperately needs and meanwhile, he can see if he knows a ship for sale that could be fast enough for us.”

She turned her pleading eyes to Han to convince him to accept, but they weren’t needed.

“You’ll work with me and Chewie for as long as is needed and obey all our orders! The _Falcon_ has been neglected and she needs a lot of repairs.”

Rey almost jumped for joy. She was good with machines and she was going to work with legends in the most famous ship in the galaxy. She could have screamed of excitement. Then she remembered something she had wanted to ask since they had arrived.

“Just out of curiosity. Arriving here, I saw a lot of big ships orbiting the planet. What are they?”

“Battleships sent by the New Republic to protect the Praxeum.” Feryaid seemed to be concerned. “When the First Order began to be a menace to other systems, the Jedi sent a distress call to the Republic. We are a threat to the First Order and we have a lot of kids here. They need to be protected.”

“They could be in danger? They are just innocent kids.”

“Now, but they are future Jedi, future problems. We really don't know. But Kylo Ren knew this facility very well. We don't want to put them at risk.”

Rey looked around her. She saw the little ones she helped to wash their hands the day before. They were happily eating in a corner of the dining room helped by three adults, who watched them like hawks. She didn't want to imagine them dead or used to spread evil... which made her think about Dopheld. She needed to have a serious conversation with him. 

🌘🌘🌘

“What was all that about?”

Feryaid looked at his uncle with a suspicious look. Rey had left with Chewbacca for a first look at the ship.

“This mission has to end someday and that girl belongs to the _Falcon_.” He could see the happy greed in his uncle's eyes. “That kid is gold, Feryaid. And there is no way she could fit into the Jedi Praxeum.”

“Why do I feel like you have a plan?”

“Seven years ago I would have had a plan. Now I want her to be with the _Falcon_. And the ship and Chewie like her.”

“You know that seven years ago she was thirteen, don't you? If that isn't creepy enough.”

He waved his hand like it was only a tiny detail. Feryaid didn't know what exactly his uncle had in mind, but he was right about one thing - Rey didn't belong to the Praxeum, and he had seen her piloting the _Falcon_...

🌘🌘🌘

Two days later Rey was in front of the Vault. It was a big name for a simple storage room. Not that she was about to say anything to Master Jakalo, but she had imagined something different. Yes, it was big, like a football stadium, but it was one fluorescent lamp away from being an evidence room of a police station. Don't ask Rey how she knew what those rooms looked like. 

She had met Feryaid that morning at the dining room after finishing a shift in the kitchen. She liked to help there whenever she was invited somewhere because she was good at cooking... and because she could always eat things. A true walking stomach. But it was a win-win situation. And the younglings, padawans, and masters she helped were more than happy to have someone outside the Praxeum to talk to.

Feryaid escorted Rey until they reached the door where Master Jakalo was waiting for them. He warned her again that nothing might call to her. 

“The object will choose you, not otherwise.” he said, “Before entering, meditate, and feel the Force. It will guide you into the Vault.”

She did what he had told her and then entered the Vault. At the beginning she didn't feel anything. She thought that maybe the master was right, that nothing was there for her. And then she heard a little music, something from far away. Rey followed the music. The closer she was, the clearer the music became. And, by all the gods in the galaxy, she knew that song better than anything! Even if she hadn't heard it in thirteen years.

Rey ran through lines of identical shelving without doubting. She knew where she was going; she could hear the volume increasing as she approached the correct place. After a short run, she stopped in front of a box. It was wood, orange-red, and about fifty centimeters long. The edges were covered in something shiny - she could have sworn it was gold, not that she had ever seen much of that metal. On the front was a decoration - a leaf? A shell? It had the same colors as the box: orange and gold. Rey was sure that whatever was in the box, it was calling her.

“...song and I’ll be there by your side,” she hummed.

She picked up the box. It wasn't very heavy but a calm warmth filled her heart. Like she was seeing again an old friend who had been gone for a long time. She wasn't sure of the sensations she was experiencing, but she knew that the box was happy to see her, and that the feeling was mutual.

”Hi, I’m Rey, nice to meet you,” she whispered, caressing the box with her fingertips.

She could almost hear a smirk coming from the object. But it was satisfied with her presentation. She turned around and made her way to the exit. She was happy;there had been no weird visions this time. At the door, Feryaid and Master Jakalo were still waiting for her. Rey showed them the box.

“Have you opened it yet?” asked her friend. She shook her head. “You should ... that design... is an orange Makkhi leaf.”

“What does that mean?”

“I’m not sure yet.” He tried to hide his concern behind an open smile. “Open the box first.”

She did, only to reveal a lightsaber. It was no more than thirty centimeters long, all metal, black, white, with some decorations in gold. The point was cylindrical and very separated from the base. Rey had the impression she was standing in front of an old man’s lightsaber.

“Wow!” Feryaid breathed, impressed, something that was very difficult to achieve. “We had _that_ in the Vault?” He looked at Master Jakalo.

“Yes. It was one of the first things that Master Luke retrieved from Mustafar.”

“Rey, are you sure this called to you?”

“Yes. I heard a song, and at the end of the song was this box. Why? Who did that saber belong to?”

If that thing was on Mustafar shortly after the end of the empire, Rey had a bad feeling. She didn't want to have a relic of Darth Vader, and the lightsaber was black enough.

“It belonged to Obi-Wan Kenobi.”

Okay... Wow indeed!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, I’m a bad, I know. But I couldn't resist it XD 
> 
> So next time, Coruscan, they have been enough at the Praxeum. And Kylo will be back 😎
> 
> Notes:
> 
> \- [Toydarians](https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Toydarian/Legends)  
> \- [The Lightsaber of Obi-Wan](https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Obi-Wan_Kenobi%27s_third_lightsaber/Legends). In fact, I’ve learn this is the third one he had. A first when he was a padawan; a second which he lost when he was captured by Count Dooku at the First Battle of Geonosis which began the Clone Wars (Anakin wasn't the only one who loose a lightsaber that day), and this one which Darth Vader kept in his fortress on Mustafar.

**Author's Note:**

> Ok, that's the first chapter. Promise, Kylo will appear at the end of the second. But if I had stretched it out until his appearance, it was going to be too long.  
> Thank you for reading it. Hope you have liked it. Tell me what you think.


End file.
